Rooftops
by LABRET
Summary: -onesided IchiHime- -IchiRuki- -Orihime-centric- -character death- After being admitted to the Seretei Asylum, Orihime developes feelings for a certain doctor who can never love her the same way.


**A/N: **This is my first Bleach fic, so please be kind. 00; I appreciate all reviews. This story is based off of the song Rooftops by Melissa McClelland

**Disclaimer:** I'm definitely not Kubo Tite in disguise..or am I? -shifty eyes-

* * *

**R o o f t o p s**

It was the first day that Orihime had been admitted into the Seretei Asylum. Her eyes were large and childish. As she walked into the office of the place that she did not yet understand to be her new home. It seemed that the man and women were all staring at her. She shied away from their glances, abashed by the attention. However, she managed to make it to the front desk even though her face hidden by her hands. She couldn't bare to look at the secretary through her fingers.

"Orihime Inoue," she said softly, cowering.

The woman looked her up and down and then at her list. The half moon spectacles that were posed neatly on her nose fell down a centimeter as she gave the young lady a look.

"Miss, you may go through that door where Dr. Kuchiki will meet you. Here is your key," the woman handed her her key and Orihime's eyes widened owlishly.

"M-mine?" she asked as she held out the key.

"Yes," the lady said, narrowing her eyes, "through that door now."

Orihime walked through the door and a couple filled her line of sight.

A woman, shorter with black hair and a man, tall with orange hair. His lips were on hers, enveloped in a soft, loving kiss.

She squeaked and stepped back a few feet as her face turned a bright red. The couple parted and looked up seeing her for the first time.

"Gomen," the smaller gasped out staring at her with glittering eyes.

The man gave a shrug and walked down another hallway. He waved to his lover before taking a turn down yet another separate corridor. Orihime's eyes followed him curiously but reverted back to the woman who was saying something.

"-Kuchiki, I'll be one of your nurses," the woman finished and stared at her for an answer.

"I-I'm Orihime," she stuttered out.

...and that was the start of the end of her life.

- - -

Overtime, Orihime grew a fondness of the rooftop of the building. She was the only one who had managed to figure out how to get up here besides the maintenance staff. And Kurosaki-kun.

In fact, the whole reason she wanted to find out how to get atop of the asylum was because she had seen the redheaded man sitting up there one day, lazily swinging his legs. Of course, Kuchiki-san was there too. They were always together. For some reason seeing them hurt Orihime, right where her heart was.

She touched her chest and felt the twitter of the beating organ under her fingertips. The beat lulled her eyes to rest and laid her back down upon the metallic roof. She thought sleepily of Kurosaki-kun and his face that was in a constant scowl.

_If you smiled more, Kurosaki-kun, more people would like you._

_Orihime-san, I'm supposed to be helping you not the other way around._

_Gomen, Kurosaki-kun._

Her eyes fluttered open as she heard the nurses calling out to her. Sighing, she curled her legs close to her body. She never wanted to go away from this place, not ever.

- - -

Orihime only realized her feelings for Kurosaki when she saw him and Kuchiki tangled together in the therapy room. Her eyes had widen so large that she feared that they would just simply fall out.

This couple she had heard to be engaged, to be inlove, to be lovers but when she saw them this way something inside her stirred and fell.

She ran away from the room as fast as she could, running to the only place she knew to be hers, where she could be alone. Behind her she could hear footsteps but, she could not hear the voices of the two who had split from each other.

Her feet lead her to the stairwell to the attic. She climbed up the ladder inside the attic to the beams and when on the beams she balanced herself far into the corner where there was a crack. That was where she managed to slip through.

When she reached the roof she used her body to cover the crack, and only then did she realize that she was sobbing.

Her face was streamed with tears, the trails ran down her cheeks and onto her arms. The voices were yelling at her, yelling strange things she didn't understand. They all contorted together in an inhuman way. She stared screaming, screaming words that she didn't know. It must have been Gaelic, her mother's language.

Then sentences formed and she could hear herself saying,  
"No, n-not until my mother calls for me!"

She knew that that was impossible, her mother was dead.

- - -

Orihime smiled whenever her older brother came to visit her. One day, when he came to see her, he brought along a white box.

She cocked her head curiously as he laughed and opened it. There, partially wrapped with paper tissue, was a pair of her mother's red, high-heel shoes. Her eyes batted as she stared from the shoes to her brother.

"F-for me?" she asked carefully as she pointed a finger at herself.

He nodded and smiled, "I found them in our attic, they were pretty dusty but when I cleaned them up I thought I'd let you have them. I already talked to the hospital, they said was okay."

Her brother pushed the box towards her with a hopeful glance. She looked down at again the back at him.

"I-I-I like them!" she managed to exclaim over her stutter.

Her brother laughed again and asked her to try them on. She nodded quickly and did so. They fit loosely, dangling off of her ankles.

- - -

Months later, she was sitting in her room, having a private session with Kurosaki when a nurse ran in. Her eyes strained as she looked at the younger woman who looked back at her shyly.

"Orihime-san, your brother has been hit by a car, he's recovering in a nearby clinic," was all the lady could say before the girl fainted.

Kurosaki dove to catch her, placing her on her bed.

"I'm sorry, was there something you had to say before I call another nurse," he asked.

The woman nodded, "Her brother, had sent her these-" she showed him a baggy containing a pair of blue hairpins "-we weren't going to allow her to have them, but now..."

He nodded. "I understand. Leave them here."

- - -

She was sitting atop the roof again and there were rainclouds above her head. Orihime longed for it to rain, as she watched the gray, fluffy clouds twist and bend. The girl could not hear her doctor, who was yelling at her to come down.

Orihime would not let herself hear him. He hated him. She leaned over the roof to look at him.

"I h-hate you!" she yelled at him, glaring at him angrily.

He kneaded the bridge of his nose before saying, "Come on, Orihime, this is childish!"

"No!" she yelled back at him. She wrapped her arms around her legs and pouted.

He looked up at her again, true concern showing in his brown eyes.

"Inoue, please," he whispered, almost too softly for her to hear.

A crack of thunder rang out and it started to rain. She was sure she hadn't heard him.

"O-okay," she had murmured softly.

When they met in her room, he lectured her about going on the roof when it was supposed to rain.  
"-and don't do it ever again, understand? The nurses and I all care about you. Trust me, we wouldn't know what we'd do without having you here."

His face was lightened for the moment with a caring smile.

"N-no, your lying. I-I'm just another crazy girl," she stuttered as a tear slipped down her cheek.

Kurosaki sighed and leaned over, his lips dangerously close to her face.

And he kissed her on the forehead.

- - -

Orihime toyed with the red shoes that had once belonged to her mother as she climbed through the crack and onto the rooftop again.

She was mad at Kurosaki again, she had caught him giving Kuchiki a very pretty ring. She frowned, not exactly understanding what was going on. Then, they kissed. She grew even more angry and stormed away to her room.

It was going to rain today, the rainclouds had formed again.

The hairpins her brother had given her were placed in her hair. She had always worn them since her doctor had given them to her.

She thought they were too childish for her at first, but then she thought of her brother and slipped them in respectfully.

The rain had started falling and she looked down to admire the few willows that had been planted near the hospital.

Out of nowhere she saw a familiar redhead crawl through the crack in the roof.

"Orihime! What are you-"

"H-hey! This is m-my secret place!" she yelled at him, standing up.

"Inoue, stop right there! Don't move!" he said eying where she stood worriedly.

"M-make me!" she spat, moving towards him.

That's when her foot slipped from the metallic roof.

She was briefly aware of falling and seeing Kurosaki's face yell down at her. The tree branches seemed to back away from her before she landed.

A sickening noise filled the air as she hit the ground.

- - -

There were few attendants to her funeral since she had no remaining family.

However, Kurosaki bent his head and prayed she was in a better place as the casket labeled 'Orihime Inoue' was placed in the ground.


End file.
